The Quartet Dragons
by Elliot Pole
Summary: Set 1,000 years in the future, this is the story about a boy who is destined to obtain the four Quartet Dragons, Emerald Dragon, Ebony Dragon, Ruby Dragon, and Sapphire Dragon, who are rumored to be more powerful than the Egyptian Gods.
1. Chapter 1

**Quartet Dragons**

**Chapter One**

The year was 3033 in the year of our Lord. It was more than a thousand years since Yugi and the spirit Atem who inhabited the body of the former had their grand duel. A History of the King of Games by Pat Wotchell relates this traumatic event and all its wonders.

For instance, we know that Yugi Motou was the first ever to defeat the three Egyptian Gods when all three were on the field. Until recently, we thought that was the greatest feat ever in the history of Duel Monsters. However, not long ago we discovered that there are beasts even more deadly and lethal than the Egyptian Gods.

They are known as the Quartet Dragons, as they are a foursome. There's Emerald Dragon, Sapphire Dragon, Ruby Dragon, and Ebony Dragon. Like the god cards, only one of each was made. These four monster cards were each given to some friends of the great Maximilian Pegasus, and asked to be handed down to their descendants. "But," Pegasus told them, "do not ever let them fall into the hands of a single individual. The consequences will be catastrophic."

His friends heeded his words, and thus the dragon cards were unknown to the world.

However, we now know all about them: their strengths and their weaknesses.

There was a prophecy made back in the year 2101. No one understood it till recently, though everyone knew it by heart:

_One will bear the Quartet Dragons  
Only one can control them all  
He is a descendant of Pegasus' Rival  
And all who trust him  
Will turn against the heart of the cards  
And play only for power………._

There were known to be two more lines to the prophecy, but they were forgotten, except by one man.

The world of 3033 is very different from what it was like in years past. There was a struggle, which is referred to as the "War of the Games." Some precious games were lost in this war, such as chess, poker, and board games. Even some holidays are considered to be part of the ancient past. Never mention Christmas, or Thanksgiving, or Easter. You'd be gawked at as if you were a nerd.

The only major holiday observed in this year is Union Day. In the year 2605, the world was united into one culture. The day was June 11, and thus it is on this day that we celebrate the conformity of the world.

Many animals are extinct, including mallard ducks, spider monkeys, the bloodhound, the white tiger, and the African elephant. A lot of the cards of the earliest days of Duel Monsters are fantastic creatures to the children of 3033 but were commonplace in the twenty-first century. Des Lacooda is a treasured beast to some of tales of fantasy. And a koala has not walked the Earth since Bill Bluffington shot the last one dead in 2758.

People in 3033 can live to be as old as 240, provided that they live an extremely healthy lifestyle. When impotent parents wish to adopt, usually one of a pair of twins is given to them. This is because twins are seen as freaks. 

Some people now live in virtual realities, stimulated by hyperactive brain waves and such. Mostly it's invalids and people who would normally request euthanasia receive this treatment.

There's much more to tell about this year (in case someone travels back in a time machine and shows this document to the people of the past), but it'll probably figure in with our story.

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Edmond Nolde was 116, and he was afraid of a very early death. His leg had been killing him for the last three days, and he had to sleep on the pneumatic bed usually reserved for those well past 200. So he called his great-grandson, Tyler, age 11, into his room. He wanted to speak to him alone.

"Tyler, my boy," Edmond said, in a choked voice. "I fear I'm going to die soon."

"But you're so young!"

"That is true. Be that as it may, I feel a pain that most do not feel till 100 years after the age I'm at right now. And, if I die, I want you to have this."

He held out a small, wooden chest. "Open it, Tyler."

The boy did so. And he gasped when he saw that it was a Duel Monsters card: Ebony Dragon.

"But, Grandpapa, this card must be extremely rare!"

"It is. Only one of it's kind. It's been passed down from generation in my family, and now it's yours."

Tyler looked longingly at the card, but then put it in Edmond's hand. "I don't want it, that way."

Edmond stared disbelievingly at his grandson.. Then he said, "I'll tell you what. Let's duel for it."

"Now that I can do!" Tyler exclaimed, running to get his Duel Disk.

A few moments later, they both had their decks ready and were facing one another. Edmond was sitting down, however, as his leg was so bad that he couldn't stand.

"Let's duel!"

4000/4000

"I'll start things off," Tyler said, "by summoning my friend, Intruder of the First Stage!"

Intruder of the First Stage  
LV: 3 DARK/ Spellcaster  
ATK: 1200 DEF: 1000  
Effect: When this monster is Normal Summoned successfully, search your Deck for one 'Mysterious Puppeteer' and add it to your Hand.

"Now I get his special ability! From my Deck comes Mysterious Puppeteer! And then I activate Ookazi! Now you lose 800 of your Life Points!"

3200/4000

"Then I set one card face-down and end my turn!"

"My move!" Edmond said. "And I summon Queen's Knight in attack mode! Then I activate Spiral Vortex!"

Spiral Vortex  
Normal Spell  
Send three cards in your hand to the Graveyard in order to add a monster from your Deck to your Hand.

"Now I discard three cards, and I do what you did by adding one monster from my deck to my hand. And I choose 'King's Knight'! And now I activate Royal Mace!"

Royal Mace  
Normal Spell  
You can only activate this card when you have a 'King's Knight' or a 'Queen's Knight' on your side of the field. Destroy one face-down Spell or Trap cards on the field in order to Special Summon a 'King's Knight' or 'Queen's Knight' to the Field.  
"Now I'll destroy a face-down Spell or Trap card."

"But you don't have any!" Tyler shouted.

"Ah, but you do. And my card does not specify that the card has to be on my side of the field."

"That's unfair!"

"It's in the rulebook. But let's not argue. Say goodbye to your face-down, and hello to my King's Knight! And you know what that means! Here comes Jack's Knight! And since you have nothing on the field to protect you except a 1200 beast, I'll have Queen's Knight attack!"

Edmond's monster moved so swiftly that it was impossible to notice that Tyler's Intruder was wailing as it was slashed in two.

3200/3500

"Then Jack's Knight and King's Knight combine their attacks to give you one hell of a whollop!"

The pain of the double attack was almost unbearable. Tyler fell down, hard.

3200/ 0100

"Stand up, grandson. You're still in this game."

"Yes, but barely," Tyler muttered under his breath. "I so want Ebony Dragon, but I'd like to win it. Heart of the cards, guide me."

He drew his card, and blinked. "I summon Time Wizard!"

"Oh, please. You do realize that you are risking your Life Points in order to destroy three monsters? That's really dangerous!"

"So what? Time Wizard, do your thing!"

The little man who looked like a clock jumped twenty feet in the air. His spinner began to start, going faster and faster up to a point. Which was it going to land on? Skull or crown? It started to slow down….it looked like it was going to land on a skull. It stopped. Tyler had lost. He hung his head. But what's this? The spinner moved two millimeters, and it was now on a crown. "Time!" The wizard exclaimed happily, as his magic swept over Edmond's knights.

"It seems that you were saved. But this duel is far from over."  
"Yeah, I suppose so. But I have Time Wizard attack you, and then I'll just set one card face-down and end my turn."

2700/0100

Edmond drew his card. "Are you ready for this? Just when I use all my cards, I get the power to recharge! I activate Card of Sanctity!"

Both players drew till they had six cards. Edmond's eyes were twinkling, and Tyler was scowling (though not because he had gotten a lousy hand, but because his great-grandfather had been so resourceful and tricky.)

"Now I activate Premature Burial, giving up 800 of my Life Points to bring back Dark Magician from my Graveyard."

2400/0100

"You never had a Dark Magician, Grandfather!"

"Yes I did. When I discarded three cards with Spiral Vortex, he was one of the ones I sent to the Graveyard. But there's more where that came from. I activate Emblem of Dragon Destroyer to add one Buster Blader from my Graveyard to my Hand. (He was another one I sent to the Graveyard without your knowledge.) Then I fuse him with Buster Blader by the power of my Polymerization to create Dark Paladin! Then I have him attack your precious Time Wizard with Dak Sword of Tumult!"

"He, he. Too bad; you shouldn't have done that. Activate Mirror Force! So your Dark Paladin is gone!"

"That may be so," Edmond said, "but I activate Dark Magician Pearl Revolver!"

Dark Magician Pearl Revolver  
Quick-Play Spell  
You can only activate this card during a turn in which 'Dark Magician' or a Fusion made up of Dark Magician was sent to the Graveyard by your opponent's card effect. At the End Phase of this turn, Special Summon Dark Magician to your side of the field. You can also destroy any monsters on the field with 500 or less attack by discarding cards in our hand equal to the number of Monsters destroyed.

"A gun!" Tyler exclaimed. "All of the cards that feature guns in this game are deadly, unless you count Reload. What does that thing do?"

"Glad you asked. Well, first off, you'll be seeing Dark Magician soon. And secondly, you ought to kiss your Time Wizard goodbye, as it's about to receive a one-way trip to the Graveyard."

"What!?!"

"Yes, at the cost of 1 card in my hand, I can destroy Time Wizard. So aloha to Dekoichi the Battle-Chained Locomotive, and Time Wizard is destroyed. Then my turn is over."

Time Wizard disappeared and Dark Magician reappeared. Things were not looking good for Tyler.

"I draw!" the boy shouted. "And I play Swords of Revealing Light!"

The field was instantly flooded with bright light emanating from swords made of nothing but a collection of light particles. The swords appeared to be suspended in midair.

"It's strange how that card always seems to show up when we need it most," Edmond reflected.

"That's right. And now I summon Swamp Rat in attack mode!"

Swamp Rat  
LV: 4 DARK Beast  
ATK: 1400 DEF: 800  
Effect: This monster is unaffected by Equip Spell cards. Also, if there is another Beast-type monster on your side of the field, when this monster attacks a monster in defense position, when the DEF of that monster is lower than this one's ATK, take the difference out of your opponent's Life Points.

"Then I'll set another card face-down and end my turn."

"It seems really funny that you would summon that now. But, we'll see. I set my own monster face-down and end my turn!"

"One turn down, two to go. And, I don't believe it: I've just drawn the card I needed from the beginning!"

"What card is that, Tyler?"

"You'll see in a second. But first I must summon Giant Rat, another Beast-type, in ATK mode. Then I activate Grand Stage!"

Grand Stage  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Special Summon 1 monster with 'Mysterious Puppeteer' in its card name to the field. For each monster you have Normal Summoned during this duel up to the time you played this card, increase your Life Points by 500.

"Here comes Mysterious Puppeteer to make my day," Tyler said as a masked monster holding a tiny mannequin held aloft by strings appeared on the field. "Then my Life Points increase by 500 for each monster I have Normal Summoned this duel. That makes four, so that's 2000 Life Points. Yay, me."

1900/2100

"Then I have my Swamp Rat attack your face-down! And since I have another beast, you take damage to your Life Points! Now let's see what monster I destroyed."

A monster with an invisible body appeared. All you could see were his crown, his gloves, his wings, the bow and arrow used as his weaponry, and his sandals.

"Thank you for destroying my Skelengel, Tyler. For now I can draw yet another card."

"Yeah, well, you still lose Life Points."

0900/2100

"It's my turn now," Edmond said. "And it's a painful one. Activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Swords of Revealing Light!"

The swords vanished, and Dark Magician positioned himself for an onslaught.

"Now I summon my trusty Warrior of Zera (1600/1600) in ATK mode. Say, that reminds me of a very interesting story about this monster. Do you want to hear it?"

"Maybe some other time."

"Okay then. Dark Magician, attack Mysterious Puppeteer with Dark Magic Attack!"

The puppet master vanished as quick as lightning.

0900/0600

"Now Warrior of Zera attacks Swamp Rat. So long to that monster."

0900/0400

"It's your move, Tyler."

"Yes, and it's time I won Ebony Dragon. I sacrifice my Giant Rat in order to summon King of All Animals. Now, it's true that his attack reduces to 2000 when he's summoned by only one monster, but I can still take out your Warrior of Zera."

"Noooo!!!!!!!!!"

0500/0400

"What are you crying about? You still have Dark Magician, which is more than enough to take me out. I set one card face-down, and end my turn."

"Ah, now it is my turn again. And I have Dark Magician attack your King of all Animals."

"Activate Reinforcements. My monster's attack power goes up, and our monsters destroy each other."

And sure enough, both Tyler's and Edmond's fields were soon Monster-less.

"I will end my turn," Edmond Nolde said.

"Awesome! I summon Lead Man in ATK mode!"

Atomic Hero - Lead Man  
LV: 4 EARTH Rock  
ATK: 1100 DEF: 600  
Text: One of the Mineral People, Lead Man is not something to be reckoned with. He is always searching for his fellow kinsman.

"Lead Man, attack my great-grandfather directly and win me the game!"

Lead Man did as he was bid by tossing mounds of sand in Edmond's eyes.

0000/0400

"Now, take Ebony Dragon, Tyler."

The boy did so gladly, happy that he had won the card fair and square. However, he did not know that Edmond had a monster that would've won him the game instead. Archfiend Soldier.

Edmond Nolde died several days later. Tyler kept his Ebony Dragon in a safe place, right near his heart.

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But a few years after the above duel, in 3039, he met Eddie Vilslinger. Vilslinger was a card collector, age 16, with jet-black hair and large, luminous green eyes. He discovered that Tyler had a one-of-a-kind card called Ebony Dragon, and he devised a way to claim it for his own . First he tried to give Tyler a suitcase full of some of the rarest cards ever printed, including the very Blue Eyes that all the history books said Seto Kaiba had ripped in two at the beginning of the twenty-first century. But Tyler refused, saying that Ebony Dragon was a family heirloom and not for trade.

But Eddie had a trick up his sleeve. He knew that Tyler wanted Becky Ford to be his girlfriend more than anything in the world. So Eddie asked Tyler if they could make this trade: Becky for the card. Vilslinger thought it would be a cinch to win Becky, and he also figured Tyler would be the loser in this barter.

At first Tyler refused. But he finally gave in when he saw Becky kissing Henry Malcolm. So Eddie made his efforts to woo her.

Becky was a lover of tradition, and Eddie had to take her to the cinema and pizza restaurants to make her happy. Any other girl would've found these things dull. Most dates were "virtual" and "free"; they were done by computer in a café created by that computer, they cost nothing, and you didn't run the risk of your partner touch you in an undesirable area. But Becky hated this, and Eddie's goal was to please her.

Soon he convinced her that Tyler was good-looking and that she'd be happy with him. She fell head over heels. Then Eddie demanded that Tyler give him Ebony Dragon, and the latter boy obliged.

However, Ebony Dragon was not the only one of the Quartet Dragons Eddie possessed. He also had Emerald Dragon, given to him by a boy named Knat Washington.

News got around that Eddie was going to enter a tournament, and ere long Tyler and Knat learned of the card the other had given to Vilslinger.

Tyler spoke to Becky that night. "If Eddie plays my card first, he will be my friend. If he plays Emerald Dragon first, he is my enemy."

Knat told his friends this as well, except his was reverse. If Eddie played Emerald Dragon first, he was Knat's friend; Ebony Dragon his foe.

Now, no one saw hide nor hair of the pair of the Quartet Dragons in Eddie's possession until the last match, between him and another dude.

On the field, Eddie had a Jinzo and a face-up Penguin Soldier. His opponent, Gregory Morse, had no monsters on the field, as they had been returned to his hand due to Penguin Soldier's special ability. Eddie only had 1200 Life Points left, but Gregory had his full 4000.

"Guess what?" Eddie said. "I have two of the most powerful cards in all of Duel Monsters in my hand at this very moment. Unfortunately, I can only summon one of them this turn. And I will sacrifice my Jinzo and my Penguin Soldier in order to summon my ……………………………………….Emerald Dragon!"

Emerald Dragon  
LV: 9 LIGHT Dragon  
ATK: 3000 DEF: 2400  
Effect: This monster takes on the effects of all monsters used to Tribute Summon 'Emerald Dragon.' Discard two cards from your hand to take out 1,000 of your opponent's Life Points. This monster is destroyed at the End Phase of a turn in which a monster with 'Luster Dragon' in it's card name is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or Flip Summoned, by either player.

"And now we get to see my grand monster in action!"


	2. The Hunt Commences

**The Quartet Dragons**

**Chapter Two**

The Hunt Commences

The duel between Gregory and Eddie continues:

1200/4000

"Now, I use Emerald Dragon's effect to discard two cards from my hand, in order to deal a full thousand points of damage to you!"

Emerald Dragon lit up brightly, and a burst of green-coloured flame aimed for Gregory's Duel Disk.

1200/3000

"And now I will attack you directly! Emerald Dragon, use your Flame of Clover Beam and help me defeat this loser!"

"Activate face-down card—"

"You can't!" Eddie burst out. "Thanks to Emerald Dragon's other special ability, all Trap card effects are negated."

"Who ever said my face-down card had to be a Trap?" Gregory grinned widely. "It's a prosaic spell, Book of Moon! So your dragon goes into face-down defense position."

"Fine then. I end my turn."

"I draw, and summon my favorite monster, Force-Field Dragon!"

Force-Field Dragon  
LV 4/ WIND/ Dragon  
ATK: 1500 DEF: 1200  
Effect: This monster is not destroyed in battle. Also, whenever an opponent's monster attacks this one, you only take half the normal damage to your Life Points.

"This monster will buy me some time. Now go."

Eddie smirked. "How foolish! And now it's time to end this game! Flip-Summon Emerald Dragon, and thanks to the effect he absorbed from Penguin Soldier, I can return up to two monsters to their owner's hand. I think I'll just stick with Force-Field Dragon. Ta-ta."

"Nooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!! I was sure your absorbed effects would cease after your monster was flipped face-down."

'And therein lied your mistake. Emerald Dragon is a special beast. Of course, the other three dragons defy the rules even more than he does. But enough chitchat. My dragon attacks you directly for game!"

1200/0000

Tyler Nolde was angry at Eddie for playing Emerald Dragon rather than Ebony Dragon. The latter would've been a far better choice. His effect was absolutely divine…

The next day he thought up a plan for getting his precious card back. If Eddie wasn't even going to use it, why should he have it in his possession? It wasn't fair.

Maybe he could sneak into Eddie's house at night and steal it. But would it really be stealing? Yes, it's true that he traded it for a girlfriend, but, Tyler obviously appreciated it more than Eddie did. However, the Night Patrol was always on duty, and there'd be no possible way to avoid them, unless he was extremely lucky. And Lady Luck never exactly favored Tyler.

He could try running into Eddie one day, take a quick look at his deck, take the Ebony Dragon card out, and make a break for it. But Eddie would easily be able to prove that Tyler had stolen something from him.

That night he had a date with Becky Ford. He told her about his dilemma, and she made a side comment about him going to find one of the other four Quartet Dragons, challenging Eddie to a duel, and the winner would get one of the other's Quartet Dragons. She meant it merely as a joke, but Tyler thought it a brilliant idea.

A few days later, he put on his snow boots and set out. For some unknown reason, snow had covered the ground for the past four years. Some thought it might be the onset of the next ice age. Tyler also put on a blazer and some Chivile Omega pants, which were made for long treks in the wintertime.

There was one problem: Code 314 v.8 of The Leader's Book of Laws absolutely forbade people from walking long distances. One was required to travel by automobile if he or she wanted to go more than ten miles in any direction.

And yet, there was a loophole to this law. If people, lovers were caught walking, they were ignored. It seemed that Becky would be more important to him than he had previously thought.

He called her at her house at 411 Hickory Lane. She wasn't particularly keen at the idea; it appeared to Becky to be pretty half-baked, even though it was her own. But she loved him, and in the end she consented.

They set out after she had packed her bags. They stayed at a hotel that night and paraded their love for one another. It had to be made public, no matter how much Tyler despised doing so, because if anyone suspected his plan, he'd be in danger.

Tyler and Becky had lunch at a taco café on the road the following day, and he overheard an interesting conversation.

"There's some legend going around about that kid, Eddie Vilslinger, and that dragon card he played," said a kid with orange-colored hair in the booth behind Tyler's.

"Don't remind me," said a brown-haired teen. It was Gregory. "That was the worst defeat I ever had. Usually when I summon Force-Field Dragon, I win. But in that duel…"

"Gregory, I hate to tell you this," said a girl with a bossy voice, "but that Emerald Dragon is almost like an Egyptian God. There's no way you would've won."

"An Egyptian God! Impossible! Nothing that powerful has been seen in centuries! Plus, it must have a weakness; nothing doesn't have a weakness."

"Oh, all of these dragons have weaknesses," the girl rejoined. "However, only the people who have had possession of them before know what it is. It's probably something practically impossible to pull off."

Tyler listened intently to this. He, of course, knew Ebony Dragon's effect and it's weakness. He did not know Emerald Dragon's though. But maybe they were the same? What then?

Becky brought the lunch just as the kids at that booth were leaving. They ate a hearty meal and then left.

However, there was a boy with bright-yellow hair and wearing a kilt waiting outside. "So…Tyler, isn't it?"

"Who's asking?"

"Me. Knat Washington. I'm the guy who gave Eddie Vilslinger the Emerald Dragon card."

"You!" Becky shouted angrily.

"My, my, what have we here? A pretty lass miles from home, eh?"

"She's my girlfriend," Tyler said in a threatening voice.

"I'll tell you what Tyler. I'll duel you for her."

"And why on earth should I concur?"

"Merely because I can tell you where to find one of the other Quartet Dragons if you defeat me."

"Still, she's mine, and I don't think I can risk her."

"But, Tyler," Becky said in her sweet voice. "Isn't your mission to find these dragons? And I trust your dueling skills. You can mop the floor with this loser."

"Ah, Tyler. You see? Even your girlfriend thinks it's a good idea. Besides, if you don't duel me, I'll report you to the Contact Police."

"You're bluffing! No teenager would have that kind of power!"

"Oh really? Then what do you call this?" Knat asked, pointing to a shiny golden badge on his chest that was clearly marked with the word DEPUTY.

"Probably picked it up off the ground," Tyler muttered.

"Would you like me to prove my power?"

"No. Let's just duel."

"Good choice," Knat said, positioning his Duel Disk simultaneously.

4000/4000

"I think I'll let you make the first move, Tyler."

"Fine. I summon my Woodland Sprite, and I equip it with Sword of Deep-Seated! Then I use his effect to destroy the card equipped to him and deal 500 damage to your Life Points!"

4000/3500

"Now, Sword of Deep-Seated goes to the top of my Deck thanks to its effect. Then I end my turn."

"I draw, and then I summon my Flame Devil in attack mode!"

A bright orange monster that looked a lot like the Tasmanian Devil appeared on the field. He was carrying a pitchfork.

Flame Devil  
LV 4/ FIRE/ Pyro  
ATK: 1600 DEF: 400  
Effect: When this monster attacks an ATK position Plant-type monster, deal double the normal damage to your opponent's Life Points.

"Now I equip him with Malevolent Nuzzler, making his ATK power 2300. My servant, use your Slash of Searing Flames to remove Woodland Sprite from the field."

"Do you always refer to your monsters as your servants?" Tyler wondered, as the Flame Devil spun around three times in the air and came down gyrating on top of the sprite, then brought the pitchfork down in a Samurai-like manner. The pitchfork was not made of metal but of fire, and Tyler could almost feel his monster's pain.

"Yes. That's what they are. Not friends, like that loser Yugi Motou claimed thousands of years ago, but servants. You'll come to realize that sooner or later, Tyler."

1200/3500

"Hey! What gives? How did I lose so many Life Points?"

"Hmm? Are you not familiar with Flame Devil's effect? When he roasts plant-type monsters, you take double the normal damage. You should know more about the world of Duel Monsters if you're going to try to win another Quartet Dragon." Knat chortled after he said this.

"Okay, whatever. Now I gotta really get my game on."

"Please do not use that phrase around me. I find it highly offensive."

"Oh, sorry."

"Now, I set two cards face-down and end my turn!"

Tyler looked at the five cards in his hand. He could still win. No problem.

"I summon Atomic Hero – Aluminum Man in ATK mode! This allows me to add another monster with 'Atomic Hero' in it's card name to my Hand, and I choose Atomic Hero – Plutonium Man!"

Atomic Hero – Aluminum Man  
LV 4/ EARTH/ Rock  
ATK: 1500 DEF: 1200  
Effect: When this card is Normal Summoned, add 1 monster with 'Atomic Hero' in its card name from your Deck to your Hand.

Atomic Hero – Plutonium Man  
LV 4/ EARTH/ Rock  
ATK: 1300 DEF: 600  
Text: Plutonium Man has great potential, and if used properly can be devastating to a formidable opponent.

"Hah, hah! You got Plutonium Man from your deck? There are a lot of better Atomic Hero monsters than that," Knat guffawed.

"Don't mock me! Now, I fuse my Aluminum Man with my Trojan Horse by the magic of Polymerization in order to create Mineral Horse!"

Mineral Horse  
LV 6/ EARTH/ Rock/Choice Fusion  
ATK: 2200 DEF: 1100  
Fusion Material Monsters: Any monster with 'Atomic Hero' in its card name + Trojan Horse  
Effect: When this monster attacks a monster with an Equip Spell Card equipped to it, negate the effect of the Spell Card.

"Now, I equip Mineral Horse with Sword of Deep-Seated, making its attack 2700. Then I have it attack Flame Devil with Earthy Quick Dash!"

"Not so fast. I activate my face-down card, Negate Attack. So I'm afraid your attack won't go through."

"Okay, then," Tyler said. "I set my own face-down card and end my turn."

"I sacrifice my Flame Devil in order to summon Amphibian Beast in attack mode. Then I pay 500 Life Points to place Malevolent Nuzzler on top of my Deck. Your move!"

1200/3000

"I activate Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two more cards! And I activate one of them now, Fusion Recovery! This gives my back my Aluminum Man and my Polymerization! And now I summon Death Hunter in ATK mode!"

An impish monster wearing purple and gold robes and holding a scythe appeared on the field. He wore an evil grin and one of his other hand was clutching a pistol.

Death Hunter  
LV 3/ DARK/ Fiend  
ATK: 0 DEF: 0  
Effect: This monster can only be used as part of a Fusion Summon if it is on the Field at the time of the Fusion Summon.

"What!?!" Knat exclaimed. "That monster has 0 ATK points! Why summon it? You would've done better with Aluminum Man."

"Oh, no I wouldn't. You see, I plan to summon your worst nightmare. Literally. I fuse Death Hunter with Mineral Horse in order to summon Death Horse!"

Mineral Horse and Death Hunter disappeared from the Field, replaced by a horse with fur as black as night, whose mane flowed in the light breeze coming through. For some strange reason, Knat thought he could smell the reek of death coming from the horse. As the moments passed, the horses face seemed to resemble a skull more and more.

Death Horse  
LV 8/ DARK/ Fiend/Fusion  
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000  
Fusion Material Monsters: Death Hunter + Mineral Horse  
Effect: If your opponent has a Monster with 'Death' in its card name face-up on the field, you are obligated to choose that monster as a target when attacking with this one. When this monster attacks a monster with an Equip Spell Card equipped to it, negate the effect of the Equip Spell Card. This monster is not destroyed in battle with a monster that has 'Death' in its card name.

"Sword of Deep-Seated goes back to the top of my deck. Then Death Horse attacks your Amphibian Beast with Gallop of Demise!"

Knat's green monster looked extremely frightened as the horse raced toward him. If he could have spoken, it's very likely that he would've said, "Save me, master." For not only was it so that Knat regarded his monsters as his servants, but they also regarded him as their master. As it was, Knat's single face-down card was not made for this situation. The sight of Amphibian Beast's shaking body sent tremors down Knat's spine. He began to wonder who this Tyler kid was, who had monsters as powerful as Death Horse.

After the attack, smoke appeared on the field. Knat hadn't lost much Life Points, but he already hated that horse and wanted to destroy it A.S.A.P.

1200/2900


	3. Battle of Chivalry

**The Quartet Dragons**

**Chapter Three**

Knat was thinking about how to solve the problem when he drew his Malevolent Nuzzler. That would not help him now. And if he didn't do something soon, his Life Points would be in serious danger. "I set down one monster face-down, and then I end my turn."

"Good," Tyler said. "And let's watch your life points go down. I summon Aluminum Man yet again! Only this time, you're not safe. Now, Death Horse, strike his monster!"

"Thank you," Knat said.

"You're thanking me for destroying your monster? Why?"

"Because the monster you destroyed was my buddy Skelengel. And he allows me to draw an extra card."

"I hate that monster! But whatever. Take your card, so that I can order my Aluminum Man to attack."

Knat looked at his new card. Monster Reborn! Excellent! When used in the right way, this card could snare victory from his opponent's clutches.

"Now, Aluminum Man, Reynolds Foil Magic Wrap!"

The body of Tyler's opponent appeared to be covered in aluminum foil for an instant before his Life Points were cut drastically.

1200/1400

"My turn is over."

"Yes! And now prepare to face my wrath! I activate my card Pot of Greed! Now I get to draw two cards! Ah, just what I needed! Activate Fusion Gate! Now monsters can combine without the aid of Polymerization. So I'm free to fuse the Queen's Double and King of the Swamp in my hand to create Empress Judge!"

Suddenly a woman with flowing red hair and a stern face appeared on the field. She looked at Death Horse not with fright but with obstinance.

"Now, prepare to watch your dreams go up in smoke. I activate Monster Reborn to revive Death Hunter in defense mode."

"What!?!" Tyler asked, bewildered.  
"That's right. I have my own Death Monster. And it's a killer. I use the magic of Fusion Gate to fuse Empress Judge and Death Hunter on the field to create….Death Judge Female!"

Knat's monsters were absorbed by a hole in the center of the field. A new judge, twenty times more stern-looking, whose hair was as red as blood, and whose gavel reminded Tyler strongly of a guillotine for some reason, appeared in place of the monsters that left. She was very fierce, and all she required was an extra weapon to make Tyler's Death Horse seem to be an untrained mare.

Death Judge Female  
LV 7/ DARK/ Warrior/ Fusion  
ATK: 2200 DEF: 2000  
Fusion Material Monsters: Empress Judge + Death Hunter  
Effect: If your opponent has a Monster with 'Death' in its card name face-up on the field, you are obligated to choose that monster as a target when you attack with this one. When this monster is Fusion Summoned by the above Fusion-Material Monsters, you may select the effect of one of the face-up Monsters on your opponent's side of the field and make that effect belong to this monster also. In addition, this monster cannot be destroyed by a card that directly targets it.

"Okay, Tyler, my female friend is a fast learner. As we speak, she is copying the effect of your Death Horse. Never thought she was so dauntless, did you? Well, now I think I'll equip Malevolent Nuzzler to her, then have her attack with Gavel of Cemetery Wrath!"

Knat's monster gave out a loud shriek as she made a move for Death Horse. Sword of Deep-Seated was ignored and Malevolent Nuzzler made Death Judge much stronger than her adversary.

0700/1400

"Now I shall, end my turn."

"Yo ho! What I've just drawn is going to make your servant wish she was never born. I set one card face-down, switch Aluminum Man to DEF mode, and have Death Horse attack your Death Judge."

This time Malevolent Nuzzler was ignored. Death Horse's attack went through. And, of course, Death Judge was not destroyed because she had copied the other's effect. Neither monster could destroy the other.

0700/0600

"Now I end my turn," Tyler said, once again.

"I draw," Knat said, "then activate Card of Sanctity so that we can each draw until we have six cards in our hands."

Knat took six cards from his deck; Tyler took five.

"Now I activate the spell card, Life Restoration!"

A four-foot tall card with a green border appeared on the field. It showed a duelist in shadow receiving life force from white shapes in the background. There were several white shapes that were recognizable, including Summoned Skull, Curse of Dragon, and Exodia. The color of the life force was dark-blue.

Life Restoration  
Normal Spell  
Effect: For each monster in your Graveyard, increase your Life Points by 100 points.

"My Life Points increase by 100 for each monster in my Grave. Let me recall them to you: Flame Devil, Amphibian Beast, Skelengel, Queen's Double, King of the Swamp, and Empress Judge. That's 600 Life Points."

0700/1200

"Then I summon Mad-Sword Beast in attack mode. This should be just enough to win me the duel and Becky Ford as a girlfriend"

Becky squirmed where she was standing. Her with this loser? Not a chance!

"Umm…I activate my trap card to destroy a monster on field," Tyler said, after biting his lip. Knat's last remark had unnerved him.

"What?!? I hope you're not planning to destroy Death Judge with that, because it won't work."

"Death Judge is about to go to the Graveyard."

"But it doesn't work! Haven't you been listening? You can't choose Death Judge as a direct target."

"That's why I'm not. I'm using my trap card to destroy my own Death Horse."

Grim Reaper's Annihilation  
Counter-Trap  
Activate this card in response to the Normal Summoning of a monster by an opponent. Destroy one monster on your side of the field that is a creation using Death Hunter and another monster. Then destroy all Fusion monsters on the field created from Death Hunter and another monster.

Knat watched helplessly as both his and Tyler's monsters took a one-way trip to the Graveyard. Tyler's subterfuge had worked because he had destroyed Death Judge indirectly and not directly. This duel was going to be tougher than he thought.

"Well, I still can attack your Aluminum Man with my Mad-Sword Beast, dealing damage to your Life Points due to my dinosaur's Trample effect, and end my turn."

0500/1200

"Yes," Tyler said, "and now's the first step toward your defeat. I summon Dunames Dark Witch in attack mode, and have her attack your Mad-Sword Beast."

A haze of smoke covered the field as Tyler's witch blazed her dark magic against the defending dinosaur.

0500/0800

"Then I am obliged to end my turn."

Knat drew his card. "Ah, perfect! I summon Chivalric Knight #1!"

A monster in lime-green mail appeared on the field. He was brandishing a broadsword, but he looked sort of lonely.

Chivalric Knight #1  
LV 3/EARTH/ Warrior  
ATK: 1300 DEF: 700  
Effect: When this monster is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can Special Summon one 'Chivalric Knight #2' from your hand.

"His effect allows me to Special Summon Chivalric Knight #2!"

Another knight, this one clad in red armour, was summoned to the field. Also, instead of a broadsword, he wielded a poniard.

Chivalric Knight #2  
LV 3/ EARTH/ Warrior  
ATK: 1100 DEF: 900  
Effect: When this monster is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, you can Special Summon one 'Chivalric Knight #3 from your hand.

"And now I can summon the third Chivalric Knight!"

"How many of those do you have?" Tyler inquired.

"Just three," Knat said, as a violet knight appeared on his side of the field. For weaponry he had scimitar and a large shield.

Chivalric Knight #3  
LV 3/ EARTH/ Warrior  
ATK: 900 DEF: 1100  
Effect: Raise the ATK of all monsters with 'Chivalric Knight in their card name by 300 points.

"Now all my monsters are 300 points stronger. Then I have my first Chivalric Knight attack your Dunames Dark Witch with Super Ferocious Broadsword!"

"What on earth are you doing? My witch is stronger."

"Yes, but thanks to the trap I'm activating now, my action is so worth it. Go, Code of Chivalry!"

Code of Chivalry  
Normal Trap  
Effect: When a monster on your side of the field with 'Chivalric Knight' in its card name attacks a female monster this turn and is destroyed, Special Summon the monster and take control of the female monster during the End Phase.

"Here's how it works. I'm attacking your monster, which is a recognized female. What is going to happen would be the same if it was Dark Magician Girl, Lady of Faith, or The Unhappy Maiden I was attacking. Now, my Chivalric Knight will attack your Dunames. Then it will be destroyed."

The green knight bravely attacked the beautiful witch, and she snapped his broadsword in two.

0500/0600

"As you can see, I lost some Life Points. But…thanks to my card's effect, my Chivalric Knight will be returning in a few seconds. Not only that, but your precious witch is soon to be my mine. Now, I will set one card face-down and end my turn."

Tyler watched, horrified, as the first of Knat's Chivalric Knights was re-summoned, and his Dunames Dark Witch abandoned him. He looked longingly at Becky. Would she abandon him as well? He shouldn't put it past her. Maybe he should show a little more chivalry like his opponent's monsters, or servants, as Knat called them. Should they rightfully be called servants? Would he get pleasure out of it? There really was only one way to find out…

"I will set one monster and two other cards face-down," Tyler said, before giving Knat the go-ahead.

"Ah. But it's too late for anything you can do. For now I sacrifice my three Chivalric Knights in order to summon Mikraith the Seven-Armed Beast!"

"No, you can't do that yet," Tyler said. "For I activate Chivalric Stickers, which forces your three monsters to remain on the field and makes it impossible to sacrifice them.'

Chivalric Stickers  
Continuous Trap  
Effect: Your opponent cannot sacrifice monsters with 'Chivalric Knight' in their card name.

"What?!? How did you know I would use Chivalric Knights in this battle?"

"I didn't. I just have a few because of a very bad experience with them in my past," Tyler replied.

"Well, your experience is about to become ten times worse. I was prepared for just such an impediment. I activate my face-down card, Chivalric Compulsion."

Chivalric Compulsion  
Trap Card  
Forces one of your opponent's face-down defense position monsters into face-up attack position. (You can only activate this if you have at least one monster with 'Chivalric Knight' in its card name on your side of the field.)

"Oh, it's too bad that I'm countering your trap with yet another one of mine, Chivalric Misery!"

Chivalric Misery  
Counter-Trap  
Negate the effect of a Spell or Trap card with 'Chivalric' in its card name and destroy it.

"Man! I wish I had Chivalric U-Turn on the field, but I don't even have one in my deck. Oh, bother it! Dunames, attack this mysterious face-down."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tyler said, off-handedly.

"Why not?"

"You'll see."

And Knat watched as Dunames ran into a wall, more specifically the Wall of Illusion, which had a purple face in the middle and yellow lines running down its sides.

"Be glad that you only lose 50 Life Points, Knat. Or did I say that's all you lose? Well, I was wrong. You also lose Dunmaes, which goes to me since I'm her owner."

"Fine, Tyler, I end my turn after setting one face-down."

0500/0550

"It looks like I'm about to win! I re-summon Dunames, enter Battle Phase and have her attack Chivalric Knight #3!"

The witch came so close to her former ally that it looked like she was going to kiss him rather than attack him. But a trap was activated before she could do either.

"My trap card is Chivalric Barrier, and it's pretty nifty too."

Chivalric Barrier  
Normal Trap  
Whenever one of your monsters with 'Chivalric Knight' in its card name is attacked, negate the attack and reduce the opposing monster's ATK by an amount equal to the victim that was to receive the attack.

"Firstly, my Chivalric Knight is safe. Secondly, your Dunames loses ATK power equal to Chivalric Knight #3's. So it drops from 1800 to 600. I know, its sad, but there is some good news. Now Dunames, a former friend of my servants, can't be called a traitor." Knat laughed cruelly.

"Yeah, well, I activate Recall. By paying half my Life Points, I can return one monster on my side of the field to my hand. And of course I choose Dunames."

Recall  
Normal Spell  
Pay half your Life Points. Return one monster on your side of the field to your hand. If you do this, you can Special Summon one monster from your Graveyard during the End Phase.

0250/0550

"What's so great about that? All you did was save your Dunames from unbearable pain. That's not going to help you win the duel," Knat said confidently.

"Ah, but there's another effect. Oh, and I set one card face-down and end my turn." Just as Tyler said this, Death Horse reappeared for a second round.

Knat felt a great hatred for that horse develop once again inside of him. If he didn't draw something good A.S.A.P., he'd be in colossal danger. He closed his eyes as he picked up his next card. It was precisely what he needed.

"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon, which allows me to destroy Chivalric Stickers. Then I summon Mikraith the Seven-Armed Beast by sacrificing my three Chivalric Knights!"

A monster with dog ears and a singular and profound face, obviously with seven arms, and with blood dripping out of it's mouth appeared on the field. It was huge; terribly huge. Even Death Horse seemed to quake in its presence.

Mikraith, the Seven-Armed Beast  
LV 10/ EARTH/ Beast-Warrior  
ATK: 2600 DEF: 2600  
Effect: If you have one or more cards in your hand, this monster cannot attack. When this monster attacks a monster in defense position, if the ATK of this monster is greater than the DEF of the defending monster, take the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points. Also, you can pay 2000 Life Points to make this monster's ATK and DEF become one. You must sacrifice three monsters in order to summon this one.

"There's something I must tell you about Mikraith here. You see, in the year 2336 CE, a man by the name of Orsabius Fitbloffin sailed on the sea heading towards modern-day Essius (then called Australia). He was captain of the ship known as the Padel of Urn. His sailors kept claiming that they saw fairies, and ghosts, and other whatnot, but he wouldn't believe them. Then one day he saw an orca whale attacking a boat not four hundred yards away. Afraid that the whale would come after him and his crew, he veered the ship in a whole new direction. That night he saw the ghost of the prophet Maugham, great-grandson of W. Somersot Maugham. Well, anyways, Orsabius was told that the orca was an ally and that he should protect it. No sane person would disobey a ghost, let alone a prophet ghost. So he went back to see what he could do for the orca, when out of the sea rose a huge monster with seven arms. The monster lifted the whale as if it were a toy car and took a large bite out of it. Then it threw the fish away after it saw the Padel of Urn. Most of the crew were eaten, save three who escaped on a lifeboat, and only because the monster was too exhausted after its meal to care about the people who lived. One of the ones on board was an artist, and he painted it. Another was a scientist skilled in nomenclature, and he named it Mikraith. The last was a writer, and he told the story. I just thought I'd let you know what you're up against."

Tyler groaned.

"Now, Mikraith, prepare for battle!"

"You can do that, but first I activate THE GLORY OF THE FORTRESS."

THE GLORY OF THE FORTESS  
Continuous Trap  
Effect: Negate all effects that read "When a monster attacks a monster in Defense Position, if the ATK of the monster is greater than the DEF of the defending one, take the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points."

"Okay, then," Knat said unenthusiastically. "But my target is Death Horse anyway, not your Wall of Illusion. Go, Mikraith! Seven-Armed Slash!"

And this time, Tyler really did feel pain. An abnormal amount, too. He had scratched his knee before, but this was terrible.

0150/0550

"Now you have only 150 Life Points, and soon you'll have none and Becky will be mine."

"I don't think so. I've been waiting for this moment all duel. I summon Plutonium Man in attack mode, then I activate my face-down, Equipment For Time Traveling!"

Equipment for Time Traveling  
Trap Card  
Remove 1 "Atomic Hero – Plutonium Man" on your side of the field from play, and destroy all cards on the field. Then you and your opponent draw until you both have only one card remaining in your decks. Choose three cards among all of them, and send all the rest to the Graveyard. You must immediately end your turn after you've chosen your three. Also, a player does not lose when he cannot draw this duel, but the player with the highest Life Points after each one has had a turn after the activation of this card is automatically declared the winner.

"Please! Anything but that!"

"I'm afraid it's too late. First, Plutonium Man disappears. He is the fuel for time-traveling. Then Mikraith and all other cards on the field are destroyed. Then we draw till we have a single card in our decks. Then we discard till we have only three."

"I know how the card works! I just didn't expect a novice like you to possess one!"

"Well, well, there's no need to be nasty. And, look on the bright side: you get to use your cards first, and I'll have nothing to protect me."

"Yeah, that is good."

"So, have you chosen?" Tyler queried.

"Yes."

"Then go."

"Right. I summon The Bistro Butcher, and I equip him with Malevolent Nuzzler and Black Pendant. Then I have him attack you directly."

"I discard Kuriboh," Tyler said.

"So that was your plan? How unfair! But at least you're forced to draw, and when I end my turn, you'll automatically lose, because you won't have anything to draw when your turn begins."

"Actually, you're wrong on both fronts. Firstly, I don't have to draw because you did ) damage to me. Secondly, my card makes the player with the lowest Life Points lose, not the player who can't draw," Tyler rebuffed.

"Oh, well, I end my turn."

"Good. And I draw. Yes! Just what I needed. I fuse Oxygen Man and Carbon Man in order to create Air Warrior!"

Air Warrior  
LV 6/ WIND/ Warrior/ Fusion  
ATK: 2200 DEF: 1100  
Fusion Material Monsters: Atomic Hero – Oxygen Man + Atomic Hero – Carbon Man  
Effect: All Battle Damage involving this monster goes to your opponent instead.

"Now, if you hadn't equipped those cards to The Bistro Butcher, we would've tied. As it stands, I'm about to win."

"How? My monster is 1200 points stronger," Knat said, shaking.

"Ah, but when Air Warrior is involved in battle, well, your Life Points are decreased, not mine. So Air Warrior, use your Winds of Annihilation to bring Knat's Life Points to zero."

The blue master of the wind obeyed Tyler, and he was destroyed.

0150/0000

"Fine. You win."

"Yes, and you owe me some information. How to obtain another Quartet Dragon."

Knat picked himself up from the ground he had just fallen on. "Well, I guess I do. And I am a man of honour. Okay. But first let me ask you something. Do you know The Leader's name?"

"The Universal Leader? All I know is that he's called O Generous One, Master of Knowledge and Skills, Keeper of Our Good Fortune, and The Man with the Golden Heart."

"No: I'm not talking about euphemisms. Now, I shouldn't be the one to tell you this, but all of those names are lies."

"Lies?"

"Yes, gruesome lies. He is not generous; he is a tyrant. He took away many of our old sciences: only what he knows is taught in schools. He is the reason most people around the world are in poverty. And, truth be told, his heart is made of steel. He enjoys tormenting people from around the world. He kills intellectuals and takes whatever he desires. And there's no one to oppose him."

"I knew that he kept winning the elections, but I thought it was because people liked him," Tyler said in dismay.

"They do like him, because of the image he's made of himself. He appears to be good with names, but he is the enemy of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

"What are those?"

"Inalienable rights that the government should not be able to take away from you. However, The Leader has the power."

"What does this have to do with the Quartet Dragons?" Tyler wondered.

"Everything. You see, he is a descendant of Maximillian Pegasus' worst rival, a man named Groffel Turk. Long story: you might hear it one day. Anyways, he already has one of the Quartet Dragons. I think he has Ruby; I'm not sure."

"Okay. So I'm supposed to duel him to get it."

"Easier said than done. I'll tell you why. His name, and it's only known to his most devoted followers, is Botem."

"Botem? Wait, if it's only known to his most devoted followers, you must be one of them."

"No; I only pretend to be. It's a ruse, a subterfuge. I desire to bring down his evil reign as much as the next guy."

They were silent for a moment and Tyler pondered this.

"Oh, yeah. Botem is actually a pseudonym itself. No one knows his true name. 'Botem' is a combination of the word 'botany' (The Leader is very fond of plants) and the name 'Atem,' who was the pharaoh that was reincarnated in the body of Yugi Motou, once crowned the King of Games."

"So this Botem…loves botany and takes his name from an ancient pharaoh? Sounds a little dodgy to me. But I can take him."

"Ummm…actually, I don't think you can. You're not strong enough."

"I bested you, didn't I?" Tyler asked, indignantly.

"Yes, but if you had faced Botem, you wouldn't have stood a ghost of a chance. He wouldn't have made the mistake of equipping The Bistro Butcher with so much for one thing."

"How do I get strong enough to face him?"

"Oh, that's simple. You must battle Millicute."

"Millicute? Who's that?"

"The White Sage. She's lives on Brockeldale Hill in Nimmian, which used to be Rome, Italy."

"Okay. Next stop: Nimmian."

"Uh, no. You're not ready for her either," Knat said, somewhat rudely.

"What do you mean?"

"You must first enter the String Tournament in New York. At this tournament, players always win their opponent's rarest cards."

"String Tournament?"

"Yes. It was supposed to be called the Strings Tournament, after a mute duelist who fought against Yugi in the ancient Battle City Tournament."

"When does the next one commence?"

"Two months from now."

"Two months! I was hoping to find one of the other dragons by then. What am I supposed to do in the meantime?"

"Train, of course. This is a tough tournament. You played a good game today. But, for one thing, you had a bunch of cards that would've been useless had your opponent not been playing with Chivalric Knights."

"It stopped you, didn't it?"

"Yes, well, Tyler, every card must count in a tournament as fierce as the String one. No one wants to lose. Seriously. The duelists there treat the game as if it's all there is to live for. If they lose, they have to flog themselves. Thus, they will not allow anyone to play with so many situational cards."

"But what if the first person I play against uses the Chivalric Knights to defeat me, and I only lose because I lack the cards to stop them?"

"I can help you with that. There's a simple method you can learn, that can help you perceive what cards your opponent might and might not play. If you know this, you can change your deck to a Chivalric Knight defense deck, or a counter-Chaos Deck."

"But, what if your method is not full-proof? What if I can't guess what my opponent's going to play just by looking at him or her?"

"I hope it's not full-proof, Tyler. Otherwise you'd never be surprised, and that would be rather dull. Just build a general deck. I'll help you with that too. And, of course, you can change your deck in between duels. Two months from now, you'll be able to take on any player at the challenging String Tournament."

"Wait! Why should I trust you? You're the friend of my enemy. The friend of my enemy is my enemy."

"What enemy is that?"

"Eddie Vilslinger, of course!"

"Oh, well, don't worry about that slump. I won't tell him anything about you."

"What about my girlfriend?"

"I promise not to touch her," Knat said, though behind his back he had his fingers crossed.

"Well, then, where do you live?"

"Red Tent. Palanbar Way. Zip Code 54214. Yard behind the Wayvoal Mansion. You can't miss it."

"Okay, I'll be there. And you better not break my trust."


	4. A Taste of Tyler's Training

"**The Quartet Dragons"**

**Chapter Four**

A Taste of Tyler's Training

The sky was serene, the birds were chirruping, and the squirrels were gathering acorns for the winter harvest, though it was only March. 

However, Tyler was not able to enjoy any of it, because he was waiting for Knat to commence training him for the upcoming String Tournament. They were indoors, and Knat had just popped a DVD into the DVD player.

"We're going to watch a recording of a previous premier match to a String Tournament that took place about four years ago."

On the screen, they saw a girl (about thirteen years of age), with light-orange hair, and wearing a blue bonnet. Her opponent was a burly, virile boy of nineteen, who looked slightly put-out at being forced to face a little girl.

"And now," said the host, "the match between Amy Villipend and Benjamin Marrelo will now commence!"

4000/4000

"Why don't you go first, pipsqueak?" Benjamin asked, menacingly.

"Don't mind if I do! And I'll start by summoning my Cyber Tutu!"

A lithe, pink-haired female monster appeared on the field.

"Aww, does the little girl like to play with dollies?" her adversary said in a babyish tone..

Amy tried to ignore his impudence as she set two face-down cards and ended her turn.

"Fine, it's my move, and I summon Chainsaw Insect!"

"Activate face-down, Next to Be Lost! Now I can send a Cyber Tutu from my Deck to my Graveyard."

Tyler had an incredulous look on his face. "Why on earth would she do that?"

"Just watch," came the retort.

"Oh, thinning your Deck, aren't you? Well, let me help you there: Chainsaw Insect, attack Cyber Tutu with Geared Death Super-Slash!"

The agony of Cyber Tutu as Chainsaw Insect sliced her cleanly in two was almost unbearable.

2600/4000

"Then I'll set my own face-down, and let you go."

"Well, well, this is a nice surprise," said Amy. "As you were aware, your Chainsaw Insect allowed me to draw a card. I'd say I got the advantage, especially when you see what it was. Come out, Cyber Dragon!"

A metallic, data-compressed dragon appeared on the field. Even though his body was made of the same material as a robot's, his mind was dragonic. He was ready to charge into battle, even against something as powerful as Chainsaw Insect.

"And now, for my favorite equip, Cyber Roller Skates!"

Cyber Roller Skates  
Equip Spell Card  
You can only equip this to a Machine-type Monster. A monster equipped with this card gains 300 ATK points. Once per turn, when this monster would be destroyed as a result of battle, negate the destruction. Damage calculation is applied normally.

"But that's not all! Meet my friend, Cyber Morpher!"

A black blob appeared on the field. It looked like a figure made of jello.

Cyber Morpher  
LV 3/ DARK/ Machine  
ATK???? DEF????  
Effect: This monster takes the ATK and DEF equal to that of the last monster of your opponent's destroyed in battle.

"Cyber Dragon, do your thing!"

The blast from Amy's monster swerved in swirls around Chainsaw Insect. Since both were of equal attack strength, the latter sent his own destructive blast back at Cyber Dragon. However, the roller skates allowed Cyber Dragon to dance out of the way, and he was safe.

Immediately, Cyber Morpher became to change into the form of Chainsaw Insect. However, it retained its black color.

"Now my Morpher has 2400 ATK, and I have him attack you!"

"Sure, kitty. Like I'd let that happen. My face-down will save me, Hallowed Life Barrier! All it costs is one useless card from my hand, to reduce all damage I receive this turn to zero." "Kitty" is a thirty-first century term for a little girl.

"Whatever. Make your move."

"Gladly. And I'll start this turn by activating Vespine Divinity, and using it to summon Mutant Wasp!"

Vespine Divinity  
Normal Spell  
Effect: Pay 500 of your Life Points. Special Summon one monster with 'Wasp' in its card name from your deck. For each monster on your opponent's side of the field, you may summon Wasp Tokens, with the same Attribute, ATK, DEF, and level as the newly summoned monster.

Mutant Wasp  
LV 3/ WIND/ Insect  
ATK: 800 DEF: 300  
Effect: You may sacrifice all monsters with Wasp in their names on your side of the field. If you do this, combine the ATK powers and destroy a monster on your opponent's side of the field with an attack equal to or less than this combined ATK.

2600/3500

A four-foot tall arthropod with multifaceted eyes, six legs, and heavy, butter-colored wings appeared on Benjamin's side of the field. It was green in hue, and quickly multiplied into three, one for the Cyber Dragon and one for the Cyber Morpher on Amy's side of the field.

Amy's face became verdant, as if she were about to vomit. Apparently, her stomach was not able to take the sight of bugs.

"And now we can say adieu to Cyber Dragon. How? By Mutant Wasp's special ability, that's how! I sacrifice all three wasps on my side of the field, combine their strength, and destroy your dragon!"

800 X 3 2400 Cyber Dragon + Cyber Roller Skates

"Not so fast. I activate my face-down, Shift! Now your maneuver is redirected to Cyber Morpher!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Benjamin shouted.

The crimson ball that Benjamin's wasps had created went off course in the direction of the Chainsaw Insect-transformed Cyber Morpher. The latter was blasted to smithereens.

"Who would've thought a girl could do that?" Benjamin asked aloud.

"Hey, we women are excellent duelists! It's prejudices like yours that lead people to think otherwise."

"Well, whatever. I set one monster face-down, as Mutant Wasp was a Special Summoning, as well as a card in my Spell and Trap Zone. That'll be it."

"Good. And I now summon Etiole Cyber!"

"Okay, now activate A Feint Plan! There'll be no attacks on face-down monsters this turn."

"Just go."

"With pleasure. And first I'll flip up my face-down, Parasite Paracide! Now it goes face-up into your deck!"

Amy scowled. If there was anything she hated more than fighting insects in Duel Monsters, it was actually having an Insect in her Deck.

"Now I activate Jade Insect Whistle! Parasite Paracide will come out of hiding, you'll take damage, and all your monsters will become insects. Doesn't that sound absolutely divine?"

"No," Amy replied, watching angrily as the red monster with eight tentacles appeared on her field.

1600/3500

"Also, your Cyber Roller Skates disappears, because it cannot remain equipped to an Insect-type monster like your Cyber Dragon is now."

Knowing this was the truth, Amy watched disdainfully as her favorite equip went on a early trip to the Graveyard.

"Well, isn't this something?" Benjamin said in a Weevil Underwood-ish tone. "I activate Insect Barrier! From now on, Insect-types on your side of the field are sitting ducks! And thanks to Parasite Paracide, they are all sitting ducks. But enough chitchat. I activate Card of Sanctity! Now we both must draw until we have six cards in our hands."

For the first time since the duel commenced, Amy seemed worried. Depending on what Benjamin got, he may've already won. And she had no face-downs to save her. But she did get: "Watapon, I summon you!"

"It's still my turn!" Benjamin bellowed.

"But that's Watapon's effect: it's summoned whenever it's drawn."

"Yes, yes, of course. However, now's not the time for games with pink pluffballs. But it is time for a little déjà vu. I activate another Vespine Divinity, and use it to Special Summon another Mutant Wasp!"

1600/3000

Again the green arthropod appeared, and again Amy looked ready to hurl. The feeling was exacerbated when four Wasp Tokens showed up: for her Cyber Dragon, Etiole Cyber, Watapon, and Parasite Paracide.

"I sacrifice three of my tokens in order to summon Giant Lacewings!"

A monster with a wwide, gaping mouth, cuspids the size of boulders, a body as large as three barns put together, a thorax as golden as jewelry, and wings that could've swiped Mt. Everest off the face of the earth, was now on Benjamin's side of the field.

Giant Lacewings  
LV 9/ WIND/ Insect  
ATK: 2300 DEF: 2300  
Effect: For each Insect-type monster you have removed from play, this monster's ATK increases by 300.

Amy could not stand the sight of this new monstrosity. She stood crestfallen. There was no way to stop it.

"It seems the kitty can't stand the sight of my Lacewings."

"You're right about that. But as this is the rarest card in your Deck, when I win, I'll have the rights to it. And you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to rip it to shreds, and throw the pieces in your face!"

Tyler was greatly disturbed by this remark. Who in their right mind would tear up a rare card? He asked Knat.

"Just watch. We'll talk later."

"There's no way you can win, kitty," Benjamin said, comtemptuously. "However, talk is cheap. I'll have to show you. I sacrifice the two remaining Wasps on my side of the field to destroy your Etiole Cyber!"

The purple monster on Amy's side of the field disintegrated into ashes, without ever having served a purpose.

"And now I activate Vengeance Ilk! And I remove all the Insects in my Grave from play, making Giant Lacewings even stronger!"

Vengeance Ilk  
Normal Spell  
Effect: Choose either your own or your opponent's Graveyard. Then select a type. Remove from play all monsters in the chosen Graveyard of the selected type.

"Giant Lacewings now has 3200 attack power, as Chainsaw Insect, Mutant Wasp and Mutant Wasp were removed from play. And now it attacks your Cyber Dragon with Shuddering Wing Blast!"

Amy's Cyber Dragon looked down at his feet to see if the roller skates were still there. Not seeing them, he began to panic. But Amy always saved him in battle; surely she would do so now as well?

Giant Lacewings rapped itself around the astonished dragon, and crushed him like a pulp.

0500/3000

"Now I'll set two face-downs and end my turn."

Amy drew her card, then activated Tribute to the Doomed.

"I was expecting something like that," Benjamin said. "And I've come prepared. Activate trap, All-Encompassing Annihilation!"

All-Encompassing Annihilation  
Normal Trap  
Effect: You can only activate this card when a monster on your side of the field is about to be destroyed by a card effect. Destroy all monsters of the same time as the one about to go to the Graveyard.

"By destroying my Lacewings, you've allowed me to destroy all of your monsters as well."

A blast akin to the explosion of a cannon shook the field as Giant Lacewings, Parasite Paracide, and Watapon disappeared from the field.

"'Umm…now there seems to have been no point in your playing Insect Barrier," Amy pointed out.

"Ah, it seems so, doesn't it? Well, it's lucky my other face-down is Emergency Provisions, then. Bye-bye, useless spell card, hello 1000 points."

0500/4000

"Activate Symbol of Heritage! Now Cyber Tutu comes back from the Graveyard."

"How unlucky, kitty. But, tell me, how is it that you had three of those discarded, when I only saw two of them go to the Grave?"

"How do you think? Tribute to the Doomed has a cost. And I paid it with Cyber Tutu's blood. However, it's time for you to me my next spell, Cyber Pluralization!"

Cyber Pluralization  
Normal Spell  
Effect: When you have a monster with 'Cyber' in its card name that has 1000 or less ATK, you may Special Summon two of the same name from either your Deck or your Graveyard. Destroy the monsters summoned in this way at the end of the turn."

Shortly there were three Cyber Tutus where before only one had been.

"Ooh, I'm really scared of three mannequins!" Benjamin said, rudely.

"You should be, as you have no spells or traps out. But would you like more? Fine then. I summon Cyber Feldspar!"

Cyber Feldspar  
LV 2/ EARTH/ Machine  
ATK: 600 DEF: 100  
Text: The Cyber Minerals exist to protect other Machine-Type Monsters.

"Like I'm going to be afraid of a piece of feldspar!"

"It doesn't matter whether you're afraid of it or not. I have all my monsters attack you directly."

0500/0400

"Then I set one face-down, and that concludes my turn." Amy was now Hand-less. The two Cyber Tutus summoned by 'Cyber Pluralization' also vanished.

Benjamin now had two cards in his hand, after drawing. He summoned Insect Knight, and called an attack.

"Not so fast," Amy said. "Reveal face-down, Cyber Peril! By sacrificing my Feldspar, I'm able to negate all attacks you make this turn."

Cyber Peril  
Normal Trap  
Effect: Sacrifice one monster on your side of the field in order to negate all attacks aimed at a Machine-type monster this turn.

"That's the rarest card in your deck. And when I win it – notice I don't say if, but when – I'm going to rip it to pieces and throw them in your face, Kitty."

"Stop calling me 'Kitty'! I'm sick and tired of it! And your not going to win!"

"Yes, I am. And I set one face-down, and that'll have to do."

Amy drew her card. Wow, the joker wasn't expecting this. "I activate Mystical Space Typhoon!"

Benjamin's face became pallid. "Not that card! Please, anything but that!" His Mirror Force was seen as it was swept away by the heavy torrents of Amy's spell.

"Now, Cyber Tutu gets to attack you directly, since you have no monster with fewer ATK points than her on your side of the field. That's game."

0500/0000

The host held up Amy's arm. "Our participant, Amy Villipend, gets to go onto to the actual tournament, whilst Benjamin Marrelo is disqualified. He must give her his unglazed moon chip, as well as his rarest card, 'Giant Lacewings'!"

Benjamin reluctantly complied. Giving up his favorite insect to a little girl who had defeated him was no easy thing to do.

Out of malice, Amy did exactly what she said she would do during their duel. She ripped 'Giant Lacewings into sixty-odd pieces and tossed it into Benjamin's face.

The screen went snowy.

"Do they really do that? Rip up their opponent's cards I mean?" Tyler queried, very much disturbed.

"Yes. Frequently."

"Why?"

"Such is the way of the String Tournament. In fact, if you fight in the premier match, you're pretty much expected to do so."

"Weird."

"There are some peculiar rules as well. For instance, everybody must have a 'Card of Sanctity' in his or her deck or he or she is disqualified."

"Really?"

"Yes. And there's a lot of banned cards as well, including E-heroes, D-heroes, C-Heroes, B-Heroes, A-Heroes, and V-Heroes."

"What?!? My Atomic Heroes are my best monsters."

"Well, you're going to have to get some new powerful beasts."  
"Why are those banned?"

"Too much support. Too many ways to fuse. Polymerization, Contact Fusion, Future Fusion, Time Fusion, Backwards Fusion, to name only a few."

"Well, I'm glad to have a friend like you helping me."

Knat walked away. If you could've seen his face, you would've noticed a malicious grin creep across it. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into, Tyler."


	5. Clairvoyance

"**The Quartet Dragons"**

**Chapter Five**

Clairvoyance

Once during the two month period between Knat's duel and the String Tournament, Tyler Nolde went to stay at the Vinderboot Hotel, a parastatal organization where a seer was said to live.

This seer was Murza, a woman. She had flamboyant red hair and lightly pale cheeks. Murza was actually 88; but some said she had witches' blood, hence her appearance.

Tyler came in timidly. The table was covered with a crystal ball, a can of red, paint-like stuff, and some cards with a strange symbol on them. She spoke first.

"So you want your fortune told, young man?"

"Yes."

"By what means? Palmistry, the crystal ball, vicsillomy, binnerfrix, mako-suna, tarot cards, messilipsok, zipperdin, China bubolism…"

"Hold on! I never even heard of half that stuff! Please use the crystal ball. That'll probably be the most simple."

Tyler watched as she gazed into the scintillating glass. This took a couple of minutes, during which her face was in a trance.

"You are in grave danger!"

He thought nothing of this. It sounded like something from a Harry Potter novel. If this seer was going to waste his time…

"You are not who you think you are," she said.

"Whatever do you mean by that?" he demanded to know.

"You believe you are Tyler Nolde. This is not true. The real Tyler Nolde died when he was a mere infant, breaking his poor mother's heart. Mr. Nolde put the dead baby in the cradle, as he had done every night, hoping it might be revived. Your real parents heard about this, and they took the dead body and switched it with you."

"You lie, woman! Why on earth would my real parents abandon me?"

"Because only you can obtain the four Quartet Dragons. That is what your doing, isn't it?" Murza queried, feigning uncertainty. "Searching for the four dragons? Your real parents knew that one of the Noldes had one of the Quartet Dragons, and so you were given to them. It is well known that a Nolde would never give a unique and one-of-a-kind card away to anyone outside his family, not even for his life."

"Impossible!"

"Want proof that you're not really Tyler Nolde? Here it is: Tyler Nolde would never have given his card away for a girl, not even if she was the prettiest or most attractive. He would've guarded it with his life. But, then again, you did exactly what your real parents did not want you to do. You gave the dragon away, that they felt was rightfully yours. You were very naughty."

"But, if I'm not Tyler Nolde, what am I supposed to call myself?"

"Just continue going by your assumed name. It'll make things much easier. But now I have something to show you."

"What?"

"The effects of the Quartet Dragons. You must know what they do in order to combat them and succeed."

"Okay."

"Now, hold these in your left palm," Murza said, handing him a 'The Stern Mystic' and 'Eye of Truth.'

She dipped her hands in the crimson substance, and squeezed his right palm.

Almost without warning, Tyler found himself in a dark dungeon. Facing him were four dragons, the four dragons. Emerald Dragon stood tall and elegant, shimmering green in the Cimmerian tunnel. Ebony Dragon was as white as marble, its claws seeming to be extra-sharp. Ruby Dragon's red scales were brighter than Mars, and it appeared to gearing up for battle.

Yet the most magnificent was Sapphire Dragon. For some reason, Tyler thought it was a she. It was the largest, had the quickest eye, and was more blue than Emerald was green, Ebony white, and Ruby red. Tyler thought that if Polykleitos had seen it, he would've thought it be an example of the Grecian ideal of beauty. He also figured that Sapphire Dragon was the fiercest of the lot.

He struggled to tear his gaze from the Quartet Dragons. At last he looked downward, seeing a round table with the four cards on it. Tyler picked them up, in alphabetical order.

Ebony Dragon  
LV 9/ LIGHT/ Dragon  
ATK???? DEF????  
Effect: This monster's ATK and DEF is equal to the number of face-down Spell or Trap cards on both sides of the field. Whenever a monster is Normal Summoned, Special Summoned, or Flip Summoned, reduce its ATK by 1600 points. While this monster is face-up on the field, you can choose whether a Spell Card is activated or negated. When a monster with 'Luster Dragon' in its card name is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, destroy this monster.

Emerald Dragon  
LV 9/ LIGHT/ Dragon  
ATK: 3000 DEF: 2400  
Effect: This card takes the effects of the monsters used to Tribute Summon 'Emerald Dragon'. Discard two cards from your hand in order to deal 1,000 points of damage to your opponent's Life Points. When a monster with 'Luster Dragon' in its card name is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, destroy this card.

Ruby Dragon  
LV 9/ LIGHT/ Dragon  
ATK: 2700 DEF: 2200  
Effect: This card retains all Equip cards attached to it whenever it is flipped face-down. When a card is activated that would destroy Equips, the ones attached to 'Ruby Dragon' are not destroyed. Declare one Attribute. (You cannot choose LIGHT.) Discard one card from your Hand, to destroy all monsters on the field of the selected Attribute. You can only use this effect once per turn. When a monster with 'Luster Dragon' in its card name is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, destroy this card.

Tyler turned to the impressive Sapphire Dragon. The print was very tiny. Also, the last two lines were written in an unfamiliar language.

Sapphire Dragon  
LV 9/ LIGHT/ Dragon  
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2500  
Effect: 1) Clairvoyance – During your Standby Phase, you can pay 300 Life Points. If you do this, you may see the top 3 cards of your opponent's Deck and rearrange them in any order you desire. (Your opponent cannot see these cards.)

2) TradeSpell – Send 1 Spell Card in your Hand to your Graveyard, and add 1 Spell from your Graveyard to your Hand.

3) Universal Attack – You can attack all monsters on your opponent's side of the field with 'Sapphire Dragon'. If you do this, your turn immediately ends afterward.

4) Lackluster – When a monster with 'Luster Dragon' in its card name is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, destroy this card.

5) Revival – After this monster is destroyed by 'Luster Dragon' you can use this effect. Once that card with 'Luster Dragon' in its card name is destroyed, you may pay half your Life Points to revive 'Sapphire Dragon.' You may then keep on paying Life Points at half intervals to Re-Summon 'Emerald Dragon,' 'Ebony Dragon,' and 'Ruby Dragon.'

6) Graveyard Protection – While 'Sapphire Dragon' is in your Graveyard, no cards may be removed from play.

As soon as Tyler finished reading this, he found himself back in the Vinderboot Hotel, sitting across from Murza.

"Do you have any questions?" the seer asked, pleasantly.

"Yes. Why do they all have a weakness to Luster Dragon?"

"I can't tell you that. That's something you'll learn later."

"What language was that on Sapphire Dragon that I couldn't read?"

"Sanskrit. Those are her two most powerful effects."

"Most powerful? But her other effects seemed pretty powerful to me…" his voice trailed off.

"Oh, but have you not seen that Sapphire Dragon is the most puissant of the Quartet? She is so complex that only the best duelists could master her. And I'm not just talking about skill. But that's something you'll learn with time."

"But how am I supposed to face Sapphire Dragon?"

"You'll think of a way. Do you really think your parents would've chosen you to acquire the Quartet Dragons if your not strong enough to do so?"

"There you go again! My parents are the Noldes."

"You still believe that? How obstinate are you? Couldn't my showing you the Quartet Dragon's effects have convinced you that I'm a real seer? Not a phony."

"Well then: answer me this: Who were my real parents?"

"I can't tell you that either. That's something that will come with time."

Tyler was silent at this, then he turned to go.

"Wait. Before you leave, I must give you an admonition. Watch out for a kid named Munch Burham. He is your greatest foe."

"Munch Burham. Got it. Anything else?"

"Don't go seeking out your parents' identity. It'll distract you from your quest."

"Okay."

"Also, you must dump Becky Ford. She's just going to get in your way."

"But I love her!"

"If she loves you, she'll understand."

"I won't do it!"

"You will if you know what's good for you," Murza said sternly.

Tyler left angrily.


	6. The Premier Match, Part One

"**The Quartet Dragons"**

**Chapter Six**

The Premier Match, Part One

Two months had elapsed, and Tyler was now on the plane heading for New York. Betsy was looking nervously around; some boy with an orange cap on his head was staring at her. Tyler went over to ask him what was the matter, but a girl tripped him.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," she said, helping him pick up his cards. "But these things happen."

"Yeah," Tyler said, before going back to his seat, thinking he had all his cards.

**String Tournament Rules:**

1. A player must have exactly forty cards in his or her deck.  
2. One will be disqualified for not having a 'Card of Sanctity' in his or her deck.  
3. Certain cards are forbidden. See below.  
4. It is illegal in this tournament to have more than two copies of a single card in your deck.  
5. You may not play two cards with the same name two turns in a row nor summon two monsters with the same name two turns in a row.  
6. All 9-star monsters require three sacrifices in order to summon them, no matter what the textual matter says. Even if you use something like 'Monster Reborn,' three monsters must be sacrificed for the summoning of a 9-star monster.  
7. Special Summoned monsters cannot attack on the turn they are summoned.  
8. The victor of a duel obtains the rarest card in his or her opponent's deck, NOT the rarest in his or her collection. If you don't want your opponent to have a chance to win your 'Cyber End Dragon,' don't play with it.  
9. In order to participate in the quarter-final round, you must have eight moon chips. (IMPORTANT: Two of those moon chips must be glazed. Nobody has a glazed moon chip in the beginning of the tournament. You need to duel a proctor to get one. Examples of what glazed moon chips look like are on page three.)

Forbidden Cards (The short list):

Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning  
Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End  
Dark Hole  
Divine Wind  
Emperor Sky Dragon  
Giga Drain  
The Holy Tyrant  
Malice of Dark Disaster  
Operation Atomic Warfare  
Operation Computer Crash  
Operation Desert Storm  
Operation Estheon  
Operation Kid Wave  
Operation Tempest  
Rage of the Philosophers  
Seven Ways to Heaven

Cards with "Elemental Hero," "Destiny Hero," "Cybernetic Hero," "Ballistic Hero," "Atomic Hero," and "Vicious Hero" in their card names are also forbidden.

Limited Cards (One per deck):

Apple of Temptation  
Emergency Provisions  
Lightning Vortex  
Magical Mallet  
Mikraith the Seven-Armed Beast  
Mirage of Nightmare  
Mirror Force  
Ring of Destruction  
Solitary Repugnance  
Zibrum the Mystical Wynn of Tyruus

For the full list, see pages five through twenty-seven of this pamphlet. Participants are obligated to look over the list THOROUGHLY. Failure to comply with the rules will result in disqualification. Bystanders and onlookers are advised to give it a glance as well, to report any use of cards forbidden that the referee misses.

NOTE: String Tournament Rules do not apply to the premier match.

Tyler scanned the rules, knowing them by heart from Knat. Some of the forbidden cards were all Greek to him. For one, he had never heard of "Seven Ways to Heaven." Maybe it was an old card, like way back from the twenty-first century. More than a thousand years of Duel Monsters had made it difficult for people to know all the cards ever created by their teens.

He turned to page five to see the full list, and barely noticed when Knat came up and tapped him on the shoulder. "You're going to be dueling in the premier match."

"What?!?"

"Yes. You versus Henry Hazlit, or something like that. He's a new contestant too."

"But I'm not ready!"

"Don't worry; just remember our training. Oh, and if you lose, you'll have to go back home and kiss Ruby Dragon good-bye forever."

"Wow, you're really encouraging!"

"Oh yeah, you'll be on in half an hour."

"Half an hour? Thanks for telling me with plenty of time in advance."

Two months together had led them to be sarcastic with one another.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was time, and Tyler was facing Henry. The latter was wearing a purple and gold robe. He was thirty-one, tall, gangly, and he had yellow-coloured hair. He wore a disdainful expression, as if he though this duel was a waste of his time.

The host was speaking: "Welcome everyone to the 459th String Tournament. We hope you enjoy the festivities. But now it's time for the premier match between Tyler Nolde and Henry Hazlit. Show your rarest cards gentleman."

Henry held up his: "Seven Ways to Heaven"

Tyler reached for his deck, but his rarest cards was gone. But when and where?

And then it hit him: the plane! The girl must've purposefully tripped him. And she had his 'Equipment for Time-Traveling'! Oh, well, it was useless here, but…

"We're waiting…" the host said impatiently.

Tyler had no choice but to show his "Mantle on the Cross."

"Well, Henry's card is obviously rarer, but you know what they say: Use what you've got! And now, without further ado, this match will commence!"

"If I only had Ebony Dragon," Tyler muttered under his breath. "That must be rarer than any card Henry's ever seen, let alone owned."

4000/4000

"I'll go first, if you don't mind," Henry said, rudely. "And I'll summon my super friend, Tiny Snowman!"

A three-foot tall monster with a carrot nose and Oreo cookies for buttons, with shoes made of Hershey's chocolate appeared on the field.

Tiny Snowman  
LV 3/ WATER/ Aqua  
ATK: 800 DEF: 800  
Effect: Sacrifice this monster in order to Special Summon 'Abominable Snowman.'

"Now I use his effect to summon the most cold-hearted and villainous of Duel Monsters!"

The little guy was replaced with an eight-foot tall beast who had a malicious grin.

Abominable Snowman  
LV 8/ WATER/ Aqua  
ATK: 2900 DEF: 2100  
Text: Born in the alps, all warm-blooded creatures fear this oppressive monster.

"Then I set three face-downs and end my turn."

Tyler was thinking how foolish it was to set three face-downs at once. "I activate Heavy Storm!"

"No!!!!!!!!!!!! My Bottomless Trap Holes!"

"You're telling me you had three Bottomless set in one turn? Hasn't anyone ever taught you that you should only set one at a time? That's a more prudent way to duel."

"Tyler, what are you doing?" Knat yelled. "You're not supposed to be HELLPING your opponent. Idiot!"

Tyler shrugged. "It just struck me as odd that he set three Bottomless and had a 2900 beast, that's all."

"Well don't do it again!"

"I'll set one face-down monster and one other card, then conclude my turn," Tyler said.

Henry changed his body position. "Ah, look at what I just drew! I activate Frozen Sword!"

Frozen Sword  
Equip Spell Card  
This card can only be equipped to 'Abominable Snowman.' A monster equipped with this card cannot attack or change its battle position. Your opponent cannot activate any spells or traps while this card is face-up on the field. Destroy this card at the third End Phase after activation.


End file.
